NorCalSkier

Skiing the hidden treasures of far Northern California

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Winter has yet to arrive really...

This is one of those years. One of those years that you begin to think, "it might never snow this winter.... in fact it might never even rain again..."

I'm only 37, so I don't have that many years to recal, but I remember 1995-96 winter in Tahoe being really late to start, but then we did get enough to have a really fun season even if it was a bit short. 

This year is different though. There is a faceted 20" of snow in the deep spots on the North slopes... I've been looking to move to BC, but I guess it could happen there also. 

It is all to blame on this big H stuck out in the ocean:

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Snow Fall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek

This is a Heavy read from the 2012 Avalanche that took 3 great skiers from us. Keep it safe. 

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WOW! This is an amazing short film. Around 16:00 mins, #AndreasFransson and #SamuelAnthamatten just blows my mind

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This was an excellent film on the life of the Shane McConkey. Really a wonderful man that left a huge legacy. 

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If you enjoy watching the totals add up, then download and use my FREE SnoTel Data App from the Play Market.

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Skiing corn from top to bottom on Mt Lassen. Spring skiing is so much fun. Great friends, family and snow, volcanos and Praxisskis.com make it even better!

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Shot of Ellery bowl while doing some fishing. Rain and snow mix at 9000' today. Friend said Pine Creek area south of us was good on Saturday...

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Keith, owner of praxis skis, ripping down the only good snow off Dana Plateau. We woke up to sun and clear skies. Around 12 o'clock the clouds started to build and the wind came up. The snow didn't soften up. Our route to the unnamed chute got shortened up as we dropped in early on the icy slope. We skipped hiking up to Chute out off Ellery bowl and just ran it out back to the cars. "Gripped" was the response of a couple we meet who skied Ellery bowl. Same aspect, same hardpack. We'll see how tomorrow shapes up...

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Detailed!

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My favorite thing about the Scarpa Maestrale RS is the buckles are perfect for snowmobiling. No more broken buckles! Well not yet.... Great boots. Light, great walk, great ski, grippy soles, comfortable for my feet and warm.

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It was great skinning around the backyard on Presidents Day. There was random snow from ice hard steeps sugary pow in the low angle trees.

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Via Backcountry magazine

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Reglue Your Climbing Skins the Easy Way

Just removed the old glue and re-glued my skins. It was quick and easy with a heatgun, iron and the G3 Glue Renew! I read up on some troubles folks were having, but using a HOT iron and some patience, you get a nice result.

Total time was around 3 beers (1.5 hours or so).

Wear some some disposable gloves!

Using a heat-gun on the 700 degree setting, I was able to heat up the skin glue quickly then use a plastic wax scrapper to get all of it off fairly quickly. Heat, scrape, repeat.

If you have that center, no glue strip on your skins, you can pull it off, or just use a strip of masking tape down the center. Roll out the Glue Renew and start ironing.

The main problem you will run into is getting the glue to really stick to the skin and not peel off when you take the glue renew backing off. I found you need the HOT "Cotton setting" on the iron to bake it on there. Take your time with the iron too. Slowly iron the backing with the heat. Iron it more than you think (without burning your skins) and then peel the backing off when it is good and cool.

Overall, I got good results. Skins are super sticky and working super well once again. I did purchase a tube of Black Diamond glue for my pack in case I (or others) run into issues out in the wilderness. You can use this tube of glue to fix any little spots that you might find pulling off after a few sessions out.

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I'll be waiting to check out a set of these! Bang!

Oh wait... "Expected price is $1000"

Nevermind... I like ski gear, but Dynafit is getting spendy. $1k boots and $1k binders? 

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Andreas Fransson is a legend. Lots to learn from this man.

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Happy New Year! 2013 has arrived and with it a much better snowpack than last season. It was mid to end of January before we had much of anything. The backcountry of Northeastern California is really good right now. It was 14F this morning in the trees around 4500'. We do have a bit of an inversion, but it is still cold up high. It was 18F on 01/01. Cold temps, fresh snow, good base, solid snowpack = great fun!